Helmets for contact sports, such as those used in football, hockey and lacrosse, typically include a shell, a faceguard or face mask, and a chin strap assembly that removably secures the helmet on the player or wearer's head. The chin strap assembly is secured to the shell by a plurality of two-piece snap connectors, whereby the chin strap assembly can sustain a number of impacts during the course of play while remaining connected to the shell. With conventional helmets, each two-piece snap connector consists of a post extending outward from the shell and a female snap member that mates with the post. The female snap member is integrated with a buckle that typically includes two slots, wherein a chin strap member is threaded through the slots.
One existing chin strap assembly is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,934,791, which is owned by Riddell Inc., the assignee of the present application. That chin strap assembly includes a protective chin cup, a strap connected to each side of the chin cup and a buckle on each end portion of the straps. The strap ends are threaded through slots in the buckle and the buckle position may be adjusted on the strap by further threading the strap in one direction or the other through the slots of the buckle. The buckle also includes the female snap member that mates with the male snap post extending from the shell of the helmet.
While such conventional chin strap assemblies provide a number of benefits, they nevertheless have certain limitations. For example, installing and then adjusting the chin strap assembly can be difficult and time-consuming. Because the strap is fed through the buckle, two hands are required to loosen the strap within the slots of the buckle and adjust the straps further in one direction or the other. Adjusting the chin strap assembly becomes even more challenging when the player is wearing the helmet and cannot see the buckle and thus cannot determine proper positioning of the buckle. Adjustment is further comprised when the player is wearing protective gloves or if the player has limited mobility in his fingers (e.g., his fingers are taped). In the event a player needs to make a rapid adjustment, the player may have to enlist the help of another player, coach or a training staff member, which may require the player to return to the sidelines and leave the field of play thereby preventing him from being available for the next play.
The present disclosure is provided to solve these limitations and to provide advantages and aspects not provided by conventional sports helmets. A full discussion of the features and advantages of the present invention is deferred to the following detailed description, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings.